Old Town firm to design trails in Millinocket

Old Town firm to design trails in Millinocket


MILLINOCKET, Maine — An Old Town company will design and oversee the creation of a $625,000 walking and biking trail along Millinocket Stream slated for completion by November.

Millinocket councilors voted 7-0 on Thursday to award the James W. Sewall Co. a $62,500 contract for the trail work. The council followed Town Manager Eugene Conlogue’s recommendation after he and two other town officials had reviewed 15 bids and interviewed the top three finalists as part of the vetting process.

“The Sewall Co. is an excellent and highly rated firm,” Conlogue said during the meeting. “I don’t think you could do better than them.”

The 129-year-old engineering and mapping company has completed many projects around the state. Earlier this year, the state tapped Sewall to map broadband service and availability throughout Maine as part of a $25.4 million federal project aimed at expanding Maine’s high-speed Internet network.

Sewall has provided civil site design and permitting services for the $100 million, 57-megawatt wind farm slated for Stetson Mountain; the $55 million, 42-megawatt wind farm on Mars Hill — the state’s first commercial-scale wind site; and for TransCanada’s $320 million, 132-megawatt project on Kibby Mountain. That proj-ect will be finished this fall, according to the company’s Web site, sewall.com.

Sewall specializes in engineering, aerial photography, imaging and photogrammetry, geospatial solutions and forestry and natural resource consulting.

The town contracted with the Maine Department of Transportation in October to build the trail, which will run about eight-tenths of a mile along both sides of the stream between Stearns High and Granite Street schools.

The town’s plan calls for spending $500,000 in federal grants, $80,625 in DOT funds and $44,375 in town funds, of which some will be in-kind work done by town workers. The federal grants were left over from an earlier project that never materialized.

Councilors said they expected the project would beautify downtown while providing a tourist draw and a recreational outlet.

Councilor Jimmy Busque said he wanted to ensure that it didn’t interfere with a nearby informal trail used by all-terrain vehicles. Conlogue said it wouldn’t. The project will feature a dual trail system, with a paved area for walkers, joggers and bicyclists and a separate gravel area for ATV riders.

The project will go out to bid by midsummer and be completed by Oct. 29, the contract states. Design work should begin shortly, Conlogue said.

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Comments
16 comments on this item

thats good,nobody left there to ride these trails.

What a criminal waste of our money.

You can thank rep. mike michaud for this grant. We don't even have roads or sidewalks that are paved and we are going to waste $600,000 on this stupid project. I find it hard to believe that we don't have a better idea on how to use this money. Jimmy Busque is worried about the atv trails and he should be worrying about the people that walk around town on the sidewalks. This is just another waste of tax payers money.

Another example of misuse of stimulus (prokuless) money. Criminal.

Democrats love pork..this town is full of democrats...it doesn't matter that few people will ever use the trail...or that it will not aid in attracting people to our region....these self-absorbed coucilors are going to spend the money because it was given to them. PEROD! It's a sad fact but It happens every day all around the country. Our economy is in shambles and we are going to spend the money on a trail. It's too bad that the funds have been allocated for that purpose alone. If it were up to me my conscience wouldn't allow me to spend the funds at this time. I would recommend the unheard of in government....give the funds back so that they could be possibly transfered to a program that is much more worthy at this time than our need to redistribute dirt and add hot top alongside Millinocket Stream...Alas...our short sighted town leaders and state representatives will justify this and their existence yet one more time....

Ktaadn Republicans add just as much pork as the Democrats do even Rush Limbaugh admits it

With councilors that are working togather to make our town a better place to live, millinocket is moving in a positive direction.!

my memory of the millinocket stream below the iron bridge isof every house's sewer running into it. it was a poluted mess all through town. Has it cleared up yet. dont look it ti me. Big waste of money.

Is this really a good use of taxpayer dollars, especially when many of the locals appear to question its viability?

mlkfirst I've finally decided you're either a clueless councilman ( yes Millinocket has one or two ) or somebody madly in love with one of them because that is the only reason I can think of for you to still be supporting them.

eastman You are correct. Not only does it smell to high heaven every house along that river floods even 2 houses away from the river floods. I know a relative lives there. The house by the High School has a permanent hose going full blast from ice out to ice over. This path will maybe at best be usable a week a summer. On top of that the rain will surely destroy it and then where's the money comin' from to fix the heaves and cracks? Because you bet ya butt soon as a jogger listening to their mp3 player and not lookin' down trips on a crack the towns paying that MRH BILL!

If you read the articles posted tonight on the Bangor Daily... Penobscot both are Conologue whining where's the money gonna come from?

How about the 44000 you're wasting here ????????

anotherneighbor.....AMEN!.....we need to vote these clueless folks out of office and take back conolgues golden parachute....bet everyone has forgot about that one....

anothercrier,

Ok, want to bet on that one week out of the summer BS you are spreading. Put your money where your mouth is. I will bet you your next months food stamps that it will be good from at least mid june until the snow falls. Put your food stamps where your mouth is. Either you are a pathetic habitual liar or your have not taken your meds lately.

While I am typing, how about telling us about your so called "bridge to nowhere"? Please explain to us why you think this goes nowhere. Give us some facts, since you always fail to do so. Better get them straight, because I will let you know what this bridge does for the trail system if you dont know.

Whats the most fun thing to do in Millinocket? Leaving! Now with these trails there are even more ways to get the hell out.

Take the money out of Conlogue's pay.

Mike Michaud secured another nillion dollar grant for laid off workers to attend re-training and collect unemployment at the same time. Most of them have slurped at this trough numerous times.

doing all this for our kids oh i forgot our kids out of school left milt. not comeing back that million dollor swimmimg pool for our kids where are they all gone now bike and walk trail for our kids where are they all gone not comeing back they got that track over the high school but don twant to use it instead go up the grave yard and disrepect the dead

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